Screw-driver attachment.



A. LOEWENBERG.

SCREW DRIVER ATTACHMENT.

APPLIOATION FILED APR. 15, 1909.

Patented Apr. 19, 1910.

UNITE SATES PATENT FFICE.

ALFRED LOE NENBEBG, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO WILLIAM MEYER, OF

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SCREW-DRIVER ATTACHMENT.

Original application filed April 18, 1907, Serial No. 368,809.

To all whom "it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED LOEWENBERG, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Screw-Driver Attachments, of which the following is a speci fication.

On the 18th day of April, 1907, I filed in the Patent Office of the United States an application, Serial Number 368,809, for Letters Patent for improvement in screw driver attachments, of which application this is a division for the purpose of covering the subject-matter of the 5th and 6th figures of the original drawing in said case.

The present invention relates to devices intended to meet the case where a screw has to be driven in a locality difficult or impossible to reach by hand in order to hold and steady the screw during the first few twirls, until it has secured a firm bite, although reachable by driver; and it consists in a. permanent attachment of the ordinary driver, capable of being turned down to prolong the bit of such driver and engage the head slot or nick of the screw with sufficient frictional force to hold it and aline it with the bore into which it is to be driven and positively drive it for the incipient turns, and thereafter, if necessary, to be turned up and locked alongside the shaft or spindle of the driver proper to permit the use of the natural bit and to be out of the way when the driver is used for ordinary purposes.

In the drawingsFigure 1 is an edge ele vation of an ordinary screw-driver fitted with a permanent attachment according to my invention, showing said attachment in position for use, and Fig. 2, a side elevation of said construction, with the attachment folded back and looked over the shaft or spindle of the driver, leaving the bit proper free for ordinary use.

Referring now to said drawings, the numeral 1 indicates an ordinary screw-driver composed of handle 2, shaft or spindle 3 and bit or blade t, upon which is fitted the attachment 5 for the initial holding and driving of the screw. This attachment is composed of two flat springs 6 overlying, when projected for use, the flattened faces of the bit of the driver so that they may be Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. Apr. 19, 1910.

pressed down thereover, pivoted by pin 7 to the shank of the driver just behind the bit, and having a suitable yielding lock 8 to hold them in alinement with the shaft or shank. Such lock is conveniently formed by keepers or turned down ears 9 from the heel extensions of the springs, two to each extension, just far enough beyond the pivot pin 7 to enable them to embrace or saddle the shank of the driver with sufficient elastically yielding force to lock against any displacement that is unintentional and hold the attachment rigidly in line.

In the position represented in Fig. 1 these springs extend forward beyond the bit proper, and can be compressed to be inserted into the nick of the screw-head, whereupon, being permitted to expand, they will seize and hold it frictionally with suflicient force to direct the screw into its seat, when they can be manipulated by, and as a practical extension of the regular driver to drive the screw positively, either for the first few turns, or, when the nature of the material permits, to carry it home. As they thus act in the nature of a temporary or provisional bit they will hereinafter be termed bitsprings.

After the screw has been inserted and sufficiently set, or driven home, the bit-springs may be disengaged therefrom and the at tachment folded back along the shank of the driver jack-knife fashion, as indicated in Fig. 2, and will be again locked in this position against accidental or unintentional displacement, by the keepers the position of which is reversed from the inner side to the outer side of the pivot-pin, thus leaving the screw-driver proper free for any independent use to which it may be put, as for driving home the partly driven screw, or opening boxes.

Having thus described my invention and the best manner now known to me in which it may be put in practice, I declare that I do not limit myself to any particular form of locking device for holding the attachment in the positions it may assume, but

hat I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination with a regular screwdriver, of an initial screw-holding and driving attachment adapted to engage the headslot of a screw, a pivot connecting it to the Divided and this application filed April 15, Serial No. 490,078.

shank of the driver in rear of the bit, upon which pivot it may be thrown out to project beyond the bit for use or turned back alongside the shaft or spindle of said driver, completely away from said bit, and means for locking it in either position.

2. The combination with a regular screwdriver, of two bit-springs, one alongside each flattened face of the bit of the driver when projected for use, capable of being compressed and inserted in the head-slot or nick of a screw, to hold it frictionally, a pivot securing said springs to the shank of the driver behind the bit, whereby they may be turned back and brought alongside said shank, and means securing them against unintentional displacement when in either position.

3. The combination with a regular screwdriver, of two bit-springs, one alongside each flattened face of the bit of the driver when projected for use, capable of being compressed and inserted in the head-slot or nick of a screw, to hold it frictionally, a pivot securing said springsto the shank of the driver behind the bit, whereby they may be turned back and brought alongside said shank, and a yielding lock whereby they are held in either position until said lock is intentionally broken.

4. The combination with a regular screwdriver, of two bit-springs, one alongside each flattened face of the bit of the driver when projected for use, capable of being compressed and inserted in the head-slot or nick of a screw, to hold it frictionally, a pivot securing said springs to the shank of the driver behind the bit, whereby they may be turned back and brought alongside said shank, and keepers formed on heel exteir sions of said springs, beyond the pivot, which engage the shank with elastically yielding force, to lock the springs in position or permit them to be snapped into another position jack-knife fashion.

Thecombination with a regular screwdriver, of two bit-springs, one alongside each flattened face of the bit of the driver when projected for use, capable of being compressed and inserted in the head-slot or nick of a screw, to hold it frictionally, a pivot securing said springs to the shank of the driver behind the bit, whereby they'may be turned back and brought alongside said shank, a heel extension to each spring, beyond the pivot, and two keepers to each hcel extension, arranged to saddle the shank and lock the springs with elastically yielding force, in whichsoever position they are arranged.

ALFRED LOEXVENBERG. Vitnesses E. J. BOILEAU, FRANK KRAEMER. 

